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The Practice of Statistics & Student CD-ROM ReviewI teach AP Statistics out of this book, and I dislike it intensely. The problem isn't with the statistical concepts, which are on a par with other AP Statistics books, but with the organization of the book and support materials as an aid for teachers:
1) The topics are treated in a non-standard and unintuitive order. Data production is only introduced after data analysis. Regression is introduced far too early, and entirely without mathematical justification.
2) The problems are peppered throughout the text, rather than placed conveniently at the end of the chapter. The problems are very uneven in terms of effort-to-learning.
3) Key topics are buried in problems, and not highlighted in the teacher's support materials.
4) Support materials are scattered - some in the teacher's edition, some in the solutions guide, some in the Resource Binder.
5) The Resource Binder is detailed, but organized in a completely haphazard fashion; it's a hodge-podge of "oh, by the way, here's some stuff that worked when I taught it that one time" nuggets, rather than a planned support for teachers. "Guidance" is colloquial and unplanned. It does me no good to write "you might be tempted to delay this section until chapter 13 and then..." [Resource Binder, teacher commentary on section 4.2] -- either this is the time to introduce the concept or it isn't; I expect the textbook's authors to have worked this out. Significantly, the Resource Binder is not a corrected version of the 2nd Edition, but an almost entirely new work with different concepts, different suggestions, and different errors and typos. It's as if the authors didn't correct the last edition, but simply started over.
6) There are FAR too many errors in the the teaching guide, the solutions manual and the Resource Binder. Be prepared to do EVERY problem you assign, because you can NEVER rely on the answer keys. This is especially egregious on Chapter tests.
7) The mathematical motivation for some concepts is non-existent. The authors go so far as to state that some key concepts are "advanced mathematics" - but they then go no further. I find that I am continually supplementing the math concepts with another text.
8) The writing is flabby and meandering. Students report that they find it garrulous and tedious.
I can add more, but you get the gist of it. I address this review to teachers who are handed this book to consider for adoption: do NOT adopt it. Roxy Peck's book, which I've also used, is far superior, especially in its organization for a teacher's use. I am sure there are other good texts, but this isn't one of them - at least from the teacher's viewpoint.
The Practice of Statistics & Student CD-ROM OverviewTailored to mirror the AP Statistics course, The Practice of Statistics became a classroom favorite. This edition incorporates a number of first-time features to help students prepare for the AP exam, plus more simulations and statistical thinking help, and instructions for the TI-89 graphic calculator.
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